Kellogg’s Shuts Down Operations in Venezuela As Conditions Deteriorate

Battle Creek based Kellogg's in the latest company to cease operations in Venezuela. The oil-rich country is in the midst of an economic crisis.According to CNBC, workers were barred from entering a cereal plant. Kellogg's hasn't said what specifically prompted the shutdown, but other companies have dealt with raw materials shortages and problems with imports.

The move by the multinational was a typical one in Venezuela after years of economic crisis. Others, including Clorox, Kimberly-Clark, General Mills, General Motors and Harvest Natural Resources, have given up on the OPEC country, abandoning assets or selling them cheap. -CNBC

Venezuela has a presidential election this weekend, and Venezuela's socialist president Nicolas Maduro, who is expected to be re-elected, blames this latest development on Washington and greedy corporations.

Although Kellogg's says it would like to return if economic conditions improve, the country did take over the factory that made Clorox. Kellogg's reportedly supplies nearly three quarters of the breakfast food in Venezuela, so a takeover is a real possibility.